County Prosecutor presses schools to stem violence

The group met at the Morris County Firefighters and Police
Training Academy in Parsippany on Thursday, March 15. Prosecutor
John Dangler said there had been 14 incidents involving threats o f
various kinds by students since the March 5 school shooting in
Santee, Calif. in which a 15-year-old boy is accused of killing two
people and wounding 13 others. Dangler said more cooperation and
communication is needed between law enforcement officials and
school administrators and that schools should have crisis response
plans in place in case of a serious incident.

"I think the situation at Santee caused some students to react,"
said Dangler

adding that a similar increase in school threats in Morris
County occurred after the shootings at Columbine High School in
Colorado two years ago. "Any time you have national attention to an
issue like this, things start to get busy."

"Everyone is extremely alert right now," said Dangler. "If kids
are talking about something, we are acting quickly."

Post Shooting Incidents

The rash of school incidents throughout Morris County in the
last two-and-one-half weeks has included both written and verbal
threats, harassment, and possession of a weapon. Seven of the
threats resulted in formal

charges and another two in expulsion from school.

Last Thursday, a Rockaway Township seventh grader was sent to a
juvenile detention center after he allegedly threatened to harm
teachers and students. Other incidents included a Morristown High
School senior who was arrested on March 7 and charged with bringing
a knife to school and a Dover student who allegedly threatened to
shoot a classmate.

In Mount Olive, two students were suspended pending psychiatric
reviews after they allegedly threatened to kill students and in
Randolph Township, a student pleaded guilty to a reduce charge of
harassment. The student had allegedly told

a teacher he might bring a bomb to the school.

Dangler said schools should have response plans ready in case a
school needs to be evacuated and that a designated school official
should be available to activate the plan. Districts also should
drills for staff members, he said, so they know their roles in a
potential incident.

A number of county school districts already have plans in place,
said Dangler, and county officials will use them as models to
inform other districts.

Mendham Acts

Mendham High School started a Community Crisis Task Force in
1996 after two students committed suicide within a six-month
period. Principal Angela DeMartino said the school has a close
relationship with police, clergymen, and emergency workers in case
of a crisis. The school also has designated crisis centers in the
guidance and health offices where students can go with
concerns,

DeMartino said.

"We have an ongoing effort to communicate with the public," said
DeMartino. "Everyone needs to be aware of the danger signs. Many of
the kids who are involved in these incidents are isolated or picked
on."

Dangler suggested that school officials number the exterior
doors on their school buildings to make entrances and exits easily
identifiable to crisis response teams.

School administrators, said Dangler, need to have a dialogue
with students stressing the importance of bringing forth
information on a potential problem.

"There must be a comfort level so that if a student hears
something they will come forward. This must be done voluntarily,"
he said. "Ninety-five percent of students are good kids. It's a
small group we must be concerned with."

Robert Falzarano, president of the Morris County Police Chief's
Association, said that assessing school threats is
difficult.

"There is no barometer to tell whether a threat is real or not,"
Falzarano said. "Officers have been instructed to take each threat
as serious. We would rather err on the side of caution."

More Communication

Dangler said a school district should establish a "triangle" of
communication

among school officials, law enforcement officers, and parents.
He said school officials should take digital pictures of the inside
of their schools so they could be placed in the police department's
computer system in case of emergency.

Parents, he said, must be aware of what could be going on in
their homes, Dangler said.

"Across the country, it has been increasingly shown that parents
were not aware that their children were manufacturing bombs or
supplying weapons," he said.

Dangler said the juvenile criminal justice system should be
overhauled with tougher penalties for offenders.

"We still treat juveniles like we did in the 1950's," he said.
"Kids know many times that the consequences of their actions won't
be enough to change their behavior."

He said confidentiality for juveniles should be eliminated in
severe cases so their names can be published in local newspapers.
Such a measure, he said, would motivate parents to become more
involved in their child's situation. He said students who violate a
school policy also should have their names listed on a school
bulletin board.

"This system is overwhelmed," said Dangler. "It has become a
revolving door with kids. There are not enough probation officers
to meet the needs. Kids

must know that there will be meaningful consequences for their
actions."

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In recent weeks, Long Hill Township and Watchung Borough passed ordinances allowing their police departments to be able to apply for surplus equipment from the Department of Defense. Long Hill recently procured a Humvee to use in times of flooding, which Watchung states as the reason they are getting into the program. However, in cities around the country, police forces have used the program to obtain military gear, such as weapons and armor.
For more background, go to the link below
http://www.newjerseyhills.com/echoes-sentinel/news/watchung-police-department-hopes-to-receive-equipment-from-department-of/article_12ad002a-92b3-5449-a2cc-4b2cf0ce4339.html